Entertainment
Lights, camera, little action: ‘Bell Bottom’, ‘Chehre’ yet to pull crowds

Two back-to-back big releases — Akshay Kumar’s ‘Bell Bottom’ and the Amitabh Bachchan star vehicle, ‘Chehre’, both well-received by critics — may have buoyed the spirits of film exhibitors, but their box-office collections have been far from encouraging.
‘Bell Bottom’, which was released on August 19, according to trade analysts, has grossed Rs 18.55 crore till date. Compare this with the Rs 64.99 crore collected in its opening weekend by ‘Good Newzz’ (with Diljit Dosanjh), Akshay’s last film before the first nationwide Covid-19 lockdown. And that was far less than the extended opening weekend earnings — Rs 97.56 crore — of the other big 2019 film, ‘Mission Mangal’.
A number of factors have contributed to this significant drop in earnings: cinema theatres are still under lockdown in Mumbai and Pune, depriving Bollywood of 25 per cent of its revenues; the requirement in a number of malls for patrons to produce double vaccination certificates before being allowed in, which is affecting attendance in theatres located in malls; and, significantly, the closure of 1,500 single screens across India because of the pandemic-induced economic stress.
On ‘Chehre’, which opened on Friday, the analysts were not very bullish about box-office figures. Karan Taurani of Elara Capital predicted that it would make a “lifetime collection” of Rs 5-6 crore because of its “niche” storyline that only a “discerning audience” would appreciate.
Taurani also pointed out that collections have been low because of “very low occupancy in morning shows and night shows not being allowed”. He also blamed the low occupancies forced by social distancing norms being in force. Also, over the last eight days, barring this past Sunday, which did see a spike in Delhi as a result of Raksha Bandhan festivities, attendance in theatres was at an all-time low across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
Exhibitors, however, are cautiously optimistic about their business coming back to life, even if partially, because of ‘Bell Bottom’ and ‘Chehre’.
Gautam Dutta, CEO, PVR Limited, said in a conversation with IANS: “Post the reopening of cinemas after the second wave, ‘Bell Bottom’ was the first big Bollywood movie to have hit the big screen. And it has done reasonably well within the restrictions in capacity, show limitations and weekend closures.”
He also emphasised the lockdown still in place for cinema theatres in “major markets such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.”
The sentiment was share by Rajender Singh Jyala, Chief Programming Officer, INOX Leisure.
Speaking to IANS, he said: “We have always said that the industry needed a couple of mass entertainers to kick off the recovery process, and we are glad that these have arrive and are doing phenomenally well, despite the restrictions.”
“We positively hope that the momentum built by the fantastic response to ‘Bell Bottom’ in the week gone by, and the hype around ‘Chehre’, would mark the onset of our revival journey.”
For Dutta, more than the initial numbers, it is the momentum that matters. He said to IANS: “We are encouraged by the release of the long-awaited ‘Chehre’ today. Hope this will encourage producers from the Bollywood fraternity to announce their big films for theatrical release and get movie-goers back to cinemas.”
Bollywood
Animal Teaser: Ranbir Kapoor Seeks Anil Kapoor’s Validation In This Murky Father-Son Thriller

After months of wait and anticipation, the makers of the upcoming film ‘Animal’ finally dropped its teaser on Thursday, on the occasion of Ranbir Kapoor’s birthday. Within minutes of the teaser going live, fans of the actor went into a tizzy, seeing him in a totally new avatar.
Ranbir’s Animal had been in the making for quite some time now, and despite several leaked pictures and videos from the sets of the film, the makers have made sure to keep the main plot of the film under wraps.
Animal also stars Anil Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna, and a menacing Bobby Deol will play the antagonist in the film.
Watch Animal teaser
The teaser that was dropped by the makers on Thursday manages to convey the raw power, intrigue, and wild nature of the film.
It begins with Ranbir taking a stroll with lover Rashmika Mandanna, who hopes he would never turn out to be like his father. While Ranbir refuses to hear a word against his father, the teaser shows glimpses of the toxic relationship that he shares with his dad, Anil Kapoor.
As the teaser progresses, it shows Ranbir setting out in a total baddie avatar, in a quest to seek the ultimate validation from his father.
The actor can be seen going all guns blazing and by the looks of it, the film will have a lot of bloodshed and some never-seen-before action sequences.
The teaser ends with a glimpse of Bobby Deol as the villain, and he surely looks as fierce as ever.
About Animal
Animal is scheduled to hit the silver screens on December 1, 2023. Earlier, the film was supposed to release on August 11, but it was pushed due to pending post-production work and dubbing.
Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam.
Animal has been helmed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, who has the blockbuster Kabir Singh to his credit.
The film has been produced by Bhushan Kumar, and it will release in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam.
Entertainment
Pooja Hegde Is NOT Getting Married To A Mumbai-Based Cricketer

Actress Pooja Hegde recently made headlines as several media reports claimed that the she is dating a Mumbai-based cricketer and will tie the knot with him soon. However, the reports are not true.
While Pooja has not released an official statement yet or reacted to the news reports in any way, a source close to the actress exclusively informed that she is not getting married anytime soon.
“Not true. This is random news,” the source stated.
This is not the first time Pooja has been linked to a cricketer. Earlier, several reports suggested that the actress will marry a Karnataka-based cricketer, and he had even attended her brother’s wedding. However, Pooja denied the rumours back then.
During the promotions of her latest film Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, Pooja was also linked to her co-star Salman Khan. Earlier, Pooja had also denied being in a relationship with actor Rohan Mehra. For those unversed, rumours of their relationship surfaced after they were spotted together publicly.
Meanwhile, on the work front, Pooja was last seen in Farhad Samji’s Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan. The film also starred Salman, Venkatesh, Shehnaaz Gill, Raghav Juyal, Jassie Gill, Siddharth Nigam, Vinali Bhatnagar, and Vijender Singh.
Pooja was set to be a part of Mahesh Babu’s Guntur Kaaram. However, the actress reportedly decided to opt out of the movie.
The actress has not announced any of her upcoming projects yet.
Bollywood
Akshay Kumar, Twinkle Khanna Meet UK PM Rishi Sunak In London

Actor Akshay Kumar and his wife, actress-turned-author Twinkle Khanna, recently met UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in London. Taking to her official Instagram account on Wednesday (September 27), Twinkle gave a glimpse of the event they attended.
In the visual, Akshay is seen wearing a white shirt and black blazer. On the other hand, the Mela actress also wore a semi-formal outfit. The video also shows Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli performing at the event.
In the caption of her post, Twinkle revealed she doesn’t like wearing heels and also gave a shout-out to Rishi Sunak’s mother-in-law, author-philanthropist and Chairperson of Infosys Foundation, Sudha Murty.
Twinkle wrote, “As much as I dislike wearing heels and dressing up, this evening was worth all the damaged toes. @sudha_murthy_official remains my hero, but it was pretty cool meeting her son-in-law, the prime minister 🙂 @rishisunakmp. Also put the sound on and hear @andreabocelliofficial Congratulations @anusuya12 and @theowo.london.”
Recently, Twinkle Khanna completed her Masters in Fiction Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London.
British PM Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy visited Delhi, India, for the G20 Leaders’ Summit, earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Twinkle is quite active on social media and she often shares glimpses of her life with fans and followers. She made her acting debut with the film ‘Barsaat’ in 1995. She quit acting in 2001 after starring in a string of films like Mela, Baadshah, International Khiladi, Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega, Dil Tera Deewana, Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai and others.
Twinkle ventured into writing in 2015. She has three books to her credit — ‘Mrs Funnybones: She’s just like You and a lot like Me’, ‘The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad’, and ‘Pyjamas Are Forgiving’.
On the work front, Akshay will be seen in the drama film Mission Raniganj: The Great Bharat Rescue. He will also be seen in the Hindi remake of the Tamil drama ‘Soorarai Pottru’ which is all set to hit the theatres on February 16, 2024. On his birthday, Akshay also officially announced Welcome To The Jungle.
The actor also has an action thriller film Bade Miyan Chote Miyan alongside Tiger Shroff and a comedy film Housefull 5 in his kitty.
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